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Current bulk or thick film solid electrolyte CO₂ sensors are expensive, difficult to batch fabricate, and large in size. In contrast, this new amperometric, solid-state, oxide-based electrolyte CO₂ microsensor is affordable, easy to fabricate, and is so small that it could easily be integrated onto a substrate the size of a postage stamp. The basic composition of the sensor is identical to a previously designed NASA Glenn technology in which a solid electrolyte of Na₃Zr₂Si₂PO₁₂ is deposited between interdigitated electrodes on an alumina substrate and is covered by Na₂CO₃/BaCO₃. Unlike its predecessor, however, this innovation includes an additional layer of nanocrystalline SnO₂ sol gel, an electron donor type (N-type) semiconductor, on top of the Na₂CO₃/BaCO₃ . This new layer provides a greater number of electrons for reduction reaction at the working electrode to detect CO₂. As a result, overall performance is enhanced, and this new state-of-the-art sensor has the ability to operate at temperatures as low as 375°C. This low temperature capability significantly decreases the amount of power required to operate the sensor, opening the door to a multitude of new applications that were previously unattainable.

NASA's Liquid Sorbent Carbon Dioxide Removal System was designed as an alternative to the current CO2 removal technology used on the International Space Station (ISS), which uses solid zeolite media that is prone to dusting, has a low absorption capacity, and requires high regeneration temperatures and frequent maintenance. Motivated by CO2 removal systems on submarines, NASA innovators began investigating the use of liquid sorbents. Liquid sorbents have a capacity four times greater than solid zeolites, require low regeneration temperature, and need fewer unreliable moving mechanical parts than solid based systems. While submarine CO2 scrubbers spray an adsorbing chemical directly into the air stream and allow the liquid to settle, NASA's new system uses a capillary driven 3D printed microchannel direct air/liquid contactor in a closed loop system. The Liquid Sorbent Carbon Dioxide Removal System is robust and reliable, while being low in weight, volume, and power requirements. The system is capable of reaching equilibrium when the liquid sorbent surface is being regenerated at a rate equal to the rate of absorption into the liquid.